People have been trying to build their credit since before the recession hit. A number of people ran their credit into the ground in the years before the economy took a tumble and a good many did so afterwards out of necessity. During these years thousands of teenagers graduated into adulthood to find they had no credit at all. Luckily, the credit building basics are the same whether you are starting with bad credit or no credit.

In order to start building your credit you need to limit the number of credit cards you possess. Until you have good credit you should only have one credit card. Having a bunch of credit cards at once is a bad mark on your credit report. This includes all kinds of credit cards such as gas cards and store cards. The discounts are not worth the hit to your credit. Stick to one credit card to cut down on your temptation to spend and repair your credit one purchase at a time.

You also need to set the credit limit on your card to no more than a thousand dollars. It would be best to set your limit to five hundred dollars but not everyone can handle such a small limit. You can usually call your credit card issuer, which is typically your bank, and request that your limit not be automatically increased as your credit rises. Setting your credit limit low will allow you to handle your payments easier and help you control your spending.

The most important part of building your credit is paying your balance in full each month. If you can do that then you are better off than most people that are already drowning in credit card debt. Paying your balance in full each month will show creditors that you are responsible in paying your monthly balance regularly. This is what ultimately leads to an increase in your credit score and makes your life a lot easier. You may find this easier to accomplish by only using your card to purchase things you can’t use cash to pay for or by only putting something you pay regularly on your card each month such as a phone bill.

As a final note, stay away from free offers that come with credit card applications. You may find the free stuff enticing and think you can simply cancel your credit card afterward, however; doing so will result in a hit to your credit that isn’t worth the free pizza or t-shirt. Unless it is a free car don’t fill out the application unless you plan to keep the card. Follow the aforementioned pointers and you are sure to build up good credit in no time.